This is a long weekend all about power. The transfer of power from one US President to the next is always on January 20, according to the 20th Amendment of the US Constitution. And this time there’s overlap with another deeply important national day, that acknowledges the power of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, activist, philosopher and leader in the Civil Rights movement for racial equality. Dr. King’s work and his flow of beautiful, true words carrying great power, including the Nobel Peace Prize, that is undiminished today. Please listen, perhaps again, to his extraordinary I Have a Dream speech in the 1963 March on Washington, and you may weep. Because racial equality and justice is still not a truth, things are better, but there is far to go.
Yesterday, I attended the Northeastern University A Tribute to the Dream: ‘The Beloved Community’, a brilliant celebration of the life and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, hosted by President Joseph E. Aoun. We had the honor of listening to Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell. Attorney General Campbell’s words, her lived experience as a Black woman in the city of Boston, her insightful perspective and amazing talent shone through. We are fortunate indeed to have AG Campbell at the helm of our judicial system in Massachusetts.
The word power comes from the Latin posse, meaning ‘be able’ that turned into the Middle English word power by the 1400’s. Merriam Webster defines power as ‘possession of control, authority, or influence over others’, and of course, power can be used wisely or less so. The word empower is friendlier, meaning to ‘gain power, having the knowledge, confidence, means or ability to do things or make decisions for oneself’. Dr. King spoke of empowerment, and in this wonderful speech to high school students emphasized that building a successful life means being empowered, being confident in your identity, while working hard to develop your talent, to be the best you can be.
‘Empowering’ students is intrinsic in meeting the challenges of higher education, but what exactly do we mean by this? A key aspect of empowerment articulated in our Northeastern University College of Science Strategic Plan is to build the confidence of each student: so each is secure in developing their knowledge, in their freedom not to know and to question, in problem-solving, with a growth mindset, in professionalism, in being ethical and respectful people. These attributes make our Northeastern University graduates greatly valued in their next educational and career steps.
And a huge part of student empowerment is equity in their unique experiential Northeastern University education. The term used is ‘Inclusive Teaching’ and it’s relevant to every educator, every faculty member across the College of Science. You may be familiar with the term, but unsure how it applies to you. In fact, your students are diverse across every facet of humanity, and each of our responsibilities is to adopt teaching practices that support success of all learners. Our commitment to be a Diverse College where Everyone Belongs means ensuring that each student is heard, seen and acknowledged by their teachers. Each student deserves to be treated respectfully, and we are committed to empowering students at all degree levels. Please take advantage of the many inclusive teaching resources at Northeastern to empower your students. These encompass self-paced modules on how to adopt Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and so increase accessibility, becoming a Teaching Innovation Scholar to develop assignments that meet needs of all students, and collaborating with your students to gather regular feedback. Our outstanding Northeastern University Center for Advancing Teaching and Learning Through Research (CATLR) offers confidential one-on-one consultation for all educators, and Associate Dean for Equity, Tara Duffy will be pleased to share inclusive teaching practices and discuss ideas and challenges you may encounter.
Thank you for your work that includes and empowers every one of our wonderful Northeastern University College of Science students. Thank you.
